The fire was detected at 3.50
AM in the 25-year-old Surya Sen Market complex housing a godown-cum-office
complex when the victims, mostly labourers working in the market, were sleeping,
vice-chairman of the market Sushanta Ghose said.

The staircase of the
market complex was blocked with goods making it difficult for the people to
escape the inferno, Ghose said.

According to fire officials,
plastics, paper and cloth were stored in the godowns. The ground floor and the
first floor of the complex, which sustained the maximum damaged, housed 200
shops.

Ghose said there was only one proper entry and exit route of
the complex. Though there was one emergency exit, it was not used for the last
15 years, he said.

According to locals, the complex was stuffed with
inflammable articles like plastic, cloth and gas cylinders. The cause of the
fire is not yet known.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee,
who visited the market, directed police, fire brigade and municipal corporation
to submit a report on the fire within three days and announced a compensation of
Rs 2lakh to the kin of those who died.

"A compensation of Rs 2 lakh
will be paid to the kin of those who died in the fire and Rs 50,000 to those
injured," she said.

The chief minister urged people sleeping in the
market in the night to be more careful and take precautionary measures like not
lighting a fire near inflammable materials.

"They should be more
careful. Mischief-makers also can cause damage. Everything will be investigated
to find out the cause of the fire," she said before leaving for the Medical
College morgue where bodies of the victims were taken.

Fire Services
Minister Javed Khan said six persons were brought out from the burning godown in
an unconscious state by firemen who were trying to find if others were trapped
inside. The injured were rushed to state-run NRS and Medical College
hospitals.

Firemen and police personnel cordoned off the area to
facilitate fire fighting operations, Khan said.

Joint Commissioner of
Police (Headquarters) said, "19 people have been killed and several others are
injured."

He said 26 fire-tenders fought the blaze for over three
hours to bring the situation under control.

Meanwhile, an FIR will be
filed by the Fire Services Department for alleged negligence by the owners of
the market complex in Sealdah.

"A case of negligence will be filed by
the fire services department against the owners of the Surya Sen Market
complex," West Bengal Fire Services minister Javed Khan said.

Stating
that there were no fire-fighting arrangements in the building housing a godown
and offices, he said "Installation of fire-fighting equipment is mandatory in
high rises and market complexes."

He said that after the post-mortem
examination of the bodies, there would a statutory inquiry and an FIR would be
filed by the department.